Steve Langerud Offers Tips on Dealing With a Familiar Question in Job Interviews

February 23, 2011

February 23, 2011, Greencastle, Ind. — "One question that should never come as a surprise in a job interview is, 'Where do you see yourself in five years?,'" begins an article that quotes DePauw University's "career coach." Dawn Klingensmith writes, "Most interviewers realize they cannot expect you know all the specifics, yet the temptation is to provide them with the job title you expect to hold and the exact career trajectory you intend to take. Offering that sort of answer misses the point of the question and may even suggest you're rigid and unrealistic, says Steve Langerud, director of professional opportunities at DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind."

"Instead, be insightful about yourself and the industry you seek to enter; provide a strategic plan for your future instead of a list of steps; and, finally, keep the focus on how you will help your employers be successful because of what you bring to the table professionally," Langerud offers.

The text adds, "Although you need to finesse and tailor your response, a good way to frame it is to state which skills you plan to be using, which challenges you'll apply them to, which type of colleagues you'll be working with and the type of work environment you see this all taking place in, Langerud says. 'The description should be aspirational, take less than 10 seconds to state, and be behavioral enough so that the interviewer can see you doing it in their environment,' he says."

Langerud has helped more than 15,000 people with workplace issues and is regularly quoted in articles on the job market and career development. He is available to help current students and DePauw alumni plot their career paths. Visit DePauw's Office of Civic, Global and Professional Opportunities here.